Heparin is a strongly sulfated glycosaminoglycan used clinically as an anticoagulant, and it acts by accelerating the inhibition of thrombin by antithrombin. Its activity depends on a specific pentasaccharide sequence that binds antithrombin, so not every chain in a commercial preparation is active [1]. The molecule is heterogeneous in chain length and in sulfate content, and this heterogeneity is the main reason the potency is expressed in international units rather than by mass [2]. Because it is strongly anionic, heparin binds to many proteins and to positively charged surfaces, which is the basis of its role as a coating on blood-contacting devices [3]. Immobilised on a polymer surface it reduces thrombus formation without being released into the circulation, although the long-term stability of the coating is uncertain [4]. Its short half-life in vivo has driven the development of low-molecular-weight fractions and of synthetic analogues that retain the antithrombin-binding sequence [5].
- anticoagulant
- coagulation cascade
- glycosaminoglycan
- antithrombin
- pentasaccharide
- sulfation
- surface coating
- low-molecular-weight heparin
Blood Coagulation and Thrombosis Mechanisms·Hematology·Medicine·Health Sciences
References
- Wei, H.; Han, L.; Ren, J.; Jia, L.; Anticoagulant Surface Coating Using Composite Polysaccharides with Embedded Heparin-Releasing Mesoporous Silica. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 2013, 5, 12571-12578, 10.1021/am403882x.
- Mulinti, P.; Kalita, D.; Hasan, R.; Quadir, M.; Wang, Y.; Brooks, A.; Development and processing of novel heparin binding functionalized modified spider silk coating for catheter providing dual antimicrobial and anticoagulant properties. Materialia 2020, 14, 100937, 10.1016/j.mtla.2020.100937.
- Reardon, B.; Pasalic, L.; Lippi, G.; Favaloro, E.J.; Heparin Anticoagulant Therapy and Its Monitoring. Biomolecules 2026, 16, 425, 10.3390/biom16030425.
- Li, C.; Zhang, M.; Liu, X.; Zhao, W.; Zhao, C.; Immobilization of heparin-mimetic biomacromolecules on Fe3O4 nanoparticles as magnetic anticoagulant via mussel-inspired coating. Materials Science and Engineering: C 2020, 109, 110516, 10.1016/j.msec.2019.110516.
- Palm, M.; Mattsson, C.; Svahn, C.M.; Weber, M.; Bleeding Times in Rats Treated with Heparin, Heparin Fragments of High and Low Anticoagulant Activity and chemically Modified Heparin Fragments of Low Anticoagulant Activity. Thrombosis and Haemostasis 1990, 64, 127-132, 10.1055/s-0038-1647268.